The Wrath of Jaune Arc
by Genital WarThunder
Summary: "The question is not how far. The question is: do you have the constitution, the depth of fate, to go as far as it's needed?" His home was in flames, his love seconds away from death, with one final desperate plea Jaune gains the power to turn the tide. But does he have the strength to rise above, or will he fall to corruption like so many others?


"Pyrrha please don't do this," Jaune begged extending his fingers though the metal bars in the locker. His pleas fell on deaf ears as he helplessly watched her punch in a code into the terminal on the door. Before he knew it, he was in the air soaring away. He thrashed against the lockers walls with all of his might. He must have done something right because now he was going in a whole new direction. The locker hit the ground, and his head hit the roof of the locker knocking him unconscious.

When he woke up he was freezing. He curled his arms against his body as he looked around. This wasn't Vale, he'd seen this land before in a distant dream. He got to his feet and saw headstones?

"Where am I?" Jaune dragged himself up. He shakingly walked to the nearest head stone and brushed the snow away, "Ruby Rose?" The cold suddenly didn't matter anymore once the words were spoken. He ran to the next one and quickly forced off the snow, "Yang Xiao-Long?!" He ran to the next one, "This isn't real! You're not dead! You can't be dead!" Once the snow was clear, his heart stopped, "P-Pyrrha…" he couldn't bring himself to move he just cried at the base of her headstone.

"Is this what you want?" A voice called out from the void.

Jaune looked up and toward the voice, "Are you going to let your friends die? Or do you want the power to save them?"

"What?" Jaune then saw it. An altar, where a giant piece of ice was floating. Jaune wiped away the snow and saw a sword frozen in the ice. The hilt was a ram's head, its horns formed the guard, the handle was leather with three metal rings, while the pommel was made of a circle of skulls. Jaune looked at the altar and saw the inscriptions: "Whomsoever takes up this blade shall wield power eternal. Just as the blades rend flesh, so must power scar the soul." The blade was cursed.

"Are you going to let your friends die?" It asked Jaune.

"I won't!" He cried, "I will give anything pay any price. If only you will help me save my friends."

"Any price?" It asked, "What are you really asking me?"

A flash of scarlet red hair danced across his vision and a single tear trailed down his cheek, "Anything to protect her…"

"Her?"

"If I become a grimm, so be it, I'll endure the exile…and the pain…anything to protect her!"

The ice shattered and Jaune woke up next to the locker the door was opened and he felt something on his foot. He looked down and saw a Beowulf trying to chew through his boot. He kicked it off and the Beowulf lunged at Jaune, without thinking he reached out and tore out its throat with his bare hands! Here's the kicker, the body didn't disappear, it stayed and its eyes turned from red to blue. He felt a weight in his hand, Crocea Mors wasn't this heavy, he looked down and gasped at the sword in his hand. He looked up at the Beowulf and smiled.

" _Make more_ ," the sword's voice echoed through his head. Jaune motioned the Beowulf to another and he watched the wolves attack each other, quickly ripping its throat out, and just like the one before…its eyes turned blue and they both stared at Jaune.

"MORE!" Jaune commanded and the eyes on the sword turned blue and began emanating a blue fog. He stared at the ground and got a rather insidious idea. He drove the sword into the ground and watched the cracks forming glow blue. Soon enough, the bloody corpses of the fallen began to rise with the same blue eyes as the Beowolves. One corpse approached a White Fang member and slit his throat. As his blood began to escape him, his eyes turned blue and he began marching with the rest. The ground started to shake behind him, he remained unmoving as the corpse of a dragon burst from the ground. A blue light formed in its rib cage, then its eyes finally turned blue. It let out an unholy scream that echoed across Remnant before it took to the air.

" _Your progress is impressive Jaune Arc,"_ the sword commented, " _I didn't even have to instruct you on that."_

"It felt so familiar," Jaune stared at the sword, "As if I'd done it before…do you have a name? It feels weird talking to a sword as it is…"

" _I have many names,"_ The sword spoke, " _But the blade is called Frostmourne. Don't you have someone to protect?"_

"I'm coming Pyrrha," Jaune began walking toward Beacon. Normally he'd be disgusted at the sight of someone being murdered, but he had other things on his mind right now. Cinder, she manipulated Pyrrha into killing Penny, she brought the grimm and White Fang into the city, she was attacking his home. His fist tightened around Frostmourne and the dead fell in line behind him. The dragon corpse landed beside him.

"Continue your march," he spoke to his undead army as he mounted the dragon's neck, "I'll be back."

His horde continued their march toward the tower when they saw Weiss. She quickly held up her blade and readied herself, but she dropped her sword when she saw they weren't more robots, but the corpses of the fallen. They were ready to attack, only when they saw her blue eyes. The horde ignored her and kept marching toward the tower where they stopped and stared up. Weiss, close to messing herself right now, stared up with them hoping to keep up whatever facade they had for her.

…

Beacon Tower Ruins

…

"Do you believe in destiny?" Pyrrha asked on her knees in front of Cinder.

"Yes," Cinder glared before materializing her bow and arrow.

The dragon nudged Cinder, the action confused both of them. It let out a noise that can only be best described as a whine while nudging Cinder again. She walked over to the edge and saw the blue fog now surrounding the tower, then she saw Ruby jump onto the floor.

"Made it!" She cheered herself before running to Pyrrha, "Comeonwegottomove!" Ruby tried dragging the champion.

"Hold it right there!" Cinder fired and arrow piercing Ruby's calf and exiting her shin.

"Ruby!" Pyrrha finally got herself moving when the arrow broke causing pieces to shoot through her leg. Ruby was on her back, biting her lip trying her damnedest not to cry. She squealed and tears began to fall when Pyrrha tied her sash around the wound.

"I may not know how you're causing that fog but I don't care," Cinder stepped closer to the huntresses, "You BOTH will die here and now!"

She readied another arrow.

"Pyrrha," Ruby whispered through clenched teeth, "I'm sorry."

"That's my line," Pyrrha smiled as she held Ruby close.

The moment seemed like an eternity. They closed their eyes and awaited the final blow but it never came. They both opened one eye to peek at Cinder who had dropped her bow entirely. They looked at what she was staring at and saw the monstrosity first hand. The zombified dragon stared at the Grimm one with a glare. It was an unnerving sight to see a skull glare. It motioned as if it was inhaling but it had no lungs? What could it possibly do? It released a torrent of chilled air. The Grimm was entombed in ice similar to Frostmourne. With its great wingbeat the frozen dragon fell off the tower and shattered upon impact. The corpse dragon landed on the tower and shielded Ruby and Pyrrha with its boney arms.

"What are you?!" Cinder yelled. That's when the rider dismounted and looked over the boney arm holding back the huntresses.

"Pyrrha," Jaune jumped over the giant bone and pressed his forehead to hers, "Are you ok?"

"Jaune?!" Pyrrha shrieked, "What are you doing here?!"

"J-Jaune?!" Ruby equally shrieked then remembering the arrow in her leg.

"Hey guys," Jaune smiled, "Don't worry, I promise you we're all getting out of here." He turned to Cinder with icy blue eyes, "Most of us anyhow."

"What are you?" Cinder fired an arrow that Jaune deflected with Frostmourne.

" _Jaune let me take over,"_ Frostmourne told him.

" _What why?"_

" _Trust me, you want her to be afraid right? So scared she never comes back?"_

" _I want her dead…"_

" _She's only a puppet, the one pulling her strings is still out there…her death will come in due time, trust me, her blood will run down your hands. We must have patience…"_

" _Fine…"_

Jaune's eyes turned the same icy blue, the eyes of his horde brightened as well and they let out a battle cry. Weiss did the same keeping up the charade. Cinder looked over the edge and saw the numerous blue dots littering the fog. Cinder fired another arrow but her hands were shaking so much she missed without Jaune having to do anything.

Jaune simply raised his arms to the side, "Behold…"

…

Vale

…

"Do you want to say anything James?" Glynda stood next to Ironwood over a plethora of dead Atlesian Soldiers.

"You're trained for this moment," Ironwood held his head up, "But actually experiencing your men dying is something else entirely. How am I supposed to remember my training when not even a few hours ago we were all cheering at the tournament?" Ironwood began shaking, he was too proud to cry, but his body betrayed his pride. Glynda put a hand on his human shoulder when the blue fog rolled in.

"What's this?" Glynda watched the bodies' eyes turn blue. She nearly screamed when the dead bodies sat up. Ironwood jumped back and drew his Heavy Magnum. The zombies rose to their feet with their weapons at the ready. They began walking past them and seemed to move toward Beacon tower.

Glynda watched them move and turned her attention to the tower, "Where's the dragon?"

"Is that not it?" Ironwood pointed at the zombie one.

"That one's bigger," Glynda pointed, "And blue."

"Anyone else get that soul crushing feeling something just went horribly wrong?" Qrow joined the two.

"Oh what gave it away?" Glynda glared at Qrow, "The other dragon killing the grimm or the fucking dead rising?"

"Glynda," Ironwood tapped her shoulder.

"What James?!" Glynda snapped.

He pointed to a creep being stabbed by a zombie, she watched in morbid curiosity as the undead slaughtered the creep. Rather than the body disappearing, the red in its eyes turned blue and it marched with them.

"That's different," Qrow emptied his flask on the ground, "Are we going to follow?"

"What else do you propose?" Glynda followed. Qrow and Ironwood looked at each other before following Glynda. They watched in silent horror and fascination as they killed more White Fang soldiers and converted them into more of the undead. They continued their march until they met up with the one already surrounding the tower staring upwards.

"Miss. Schnee!" Glynda turned her around.

"Professor Goodwitch!" Weiss dove into Glynda's arms trembling like a small child, "What's going on? Why are the dead coming back?"

Glynda was shocked to say the very least, to see one of her top students so broken, "I don't know Weiss," Glynda ran her hand down her back in an attempt to calm her.

"Ruby ran up the tower," Weiss admitted.

"WHAT?!" They all shouted. Qrow took a few steps back, transformed into his bird form, and began flying up the tower.

"Weiss what happened?" Glynda used her best motherly voice.

"Pyrrha went up there to fight Cinder, so, Ruby went up there to save her!" Weiss began trembling again, "Then they came…"

"It's ok," Glynda tried to cease her trembling, "It's ok now Weiss."

"Glynda," Ironwood knelt next to her, "If you want to take her to the safe zone, I'll stay here."

"Are you sure about that James?" Glynda asked.

"Yeah," Ironwood nodded, "Get Miss. Schnee to safety, I'll hold the line until you get back."

Glynda picked up Weiss bridal style and began running back to the safe zone. Ironwood sighed, and poked a zombie standing right next to him. The zombie didn't react and kept his eyes glued to the top of the tower.

"Something is going on up there," Ironwood looked up too, "I hope you know what you're doing Qrow…

Qrow made it to the top and saw Ruby and Pyrrha being guarded by the dragon's arm? Ok, add that to the list of things Qrow wasn't expecting today, but he's not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. He transformed back and landed next to them. Pyrrha was too busy focusing on Jaune to notice.

"Uncle Qrow?!" Ruby gasped, "How?!"

"Don't worry about that Pip-Squeak," Qrow smiled, "What happened?"

"I came up to save Pyrrha," Ruby pointed at her, "But I got hit in the leg, and then Jaune showed up riding this thing! And I have no idea what's going on anymore!"

Qrow couldn't help but smile, but almost immediately turned back into a frown, "You got hit?"

Ruby nodded pointing at Pyrrha's sash around her calf, Qrow poked it gaining a whine from Ruby. He immediately retracted his hand, "I'm going to see what's up with Cereal Girl, wait here ok?"

"Where else am I going to go?" Ruby asked.

"What's up?" Qrow moved next to Pyrrha peeking over the dragon's bone.

Before Pyrrha could answer, more of the blue fog escaped Frostmourne's eyes. Three figures materialized from the haunting mist. When it settled at their feet Cinder gasped when she saw Emerald, Mercury, and Adam standing beside Jaune with the same cold blue eyes.

"Your selection of minions was adequate," Jaune commented, "However illusions don't work on dead men, arrogance is not a weapon, and when faced with the walking corpses of your brethren, well the rest speaks for itself."

"What the hell are you?" Cinder spoke again.

Jaune just shook his head, he smirked when the tower began to shake. Directly behind Cinder the grimm dragon rose again, she grew a victorious smirk of her own, Jaune trembled in fear, until she saw the color of its eyes, blue. Then Jaune began laughing, only this laugh sent a chill up everyone's spine.

"Is this the company she keeps now?!" Jaune grew angry, "A pitiful excuse for a maiden that couldn't get the job done right the first time so she killed a wounded helpless girl in a cage."

Pyrrha had forgotten that Jaune was in the chamber with her earlier. Qrow however grew interested, how did a boy in Ruby's class know about _her_?

"You're pathetic!" Jaune roared.

"Shut up!" Cinder readied an arrow, but in the blink of an eye Jaune was before her with his hand around her wrist. She struggled to get free, but his grip was unmoving, in fact, ice began to form around her wrist. He made a fist, effectively shattering her wrist and severing her hand. Cinder began screaming as stared at the stump.

Emerald and Mercury stretched her arms and lifted her off her feet. He grabbed her dress and ripped it off of her in one swift motion. His hands danced across her bare skin, only his touch was cold, forming goosebumps wherever he roamed.

Pyrrha couldn't help but blush with jealousy and skink her fists into the dragon's bone in front of her. Qrow was shocked, this was not the route he thought this was going at all.

A crystal dagger formed in Jaune's hand, except it wasn't your traditional dagger. This was small, the blade honed and thin enough to fit under the top most layer of flesh, and peel. Cinder's bloodcurdling screams ripped through the air so loudly the other three kingdoms probably heard them. Pyrrha and Qrow were shocked beyond words, this was something neither would've imagined.

"Guys?!" Ruby panicked, "What's going on?! I can't see anything!"

"That's probably for the best Pip-Squeak," Qrow grimaced.

"Did you know?" Jaune ripped off Cinder's bra and pinched one of her pink nipples, "That babies form nipples before their gender? I used to always wonder why men had nipples…" Jaune trailed off for a second, "I don't actually know where I was going with that." In a swift motion Jaune cut off the one he was pinching. It was as if her screams was music to his ears. He formed two icicles and drove them into her feet and into the floor below them.

"You know most would have bitten their tongue out by this point," Jaune commented going toward the hand still attached to her, "I'm glad you haven't, it means we can play a little game." He grabbed her pinky, "Guess who I am. Every wrong answer, I keep going, I stop when you get it right. I don't have any salt so this won't be as much fun, but I'll make due."

Cinder glared and spit at Jaune.

Jaune chuckled, "Wrong," he tore out her pinky's fingernail.

"Stop this," Pyrrha begged, "Please Jaune." She rose to her feet, but the wound in her ankle made her collapse. Qrow caught her and sat her back down, she gasped when she saw him but that didn't matter now, "Please," Pyrrha winced as Cinder continued to scream, "Stop him!" Qrow jumped over the dragon's arm and approached the two.

"Hey Kid," Qrow uneasily said keeping his hand on Harbinger's handle as he walked.

Jaune chuckled again, as he cut along the skin of her silky smooth moisturized hand and peeled back the skin revealing the muscles below, "You know, Jaune wanted to kill you outright," that sentence made Qrow stop dead in his tracks, _This wasn't Jaune? Who the hell was he then?_ Cinder's face clearly asked the same question, "I convinced him to let me do this to you."

"H-How?" Cinder's voice was hoarse.

"I told him the truth," he shrugged, "That you were merely a puppet and the one pulling your strings is still out there. Now, I want you to send a message to Salem."

Qrow and Cinder gasped when the name left Jaune's mouth. How did he know about her, more importantly how did he know her name?

"Your body clearly says that you failed, but I want you to tell her one thing," Jaune's eyes burned into Cinder's soul, "You'd better listen closely," Cinder was still glaring at Jaune, so he decided to pop out Cinder's left eye. She opened her mouth to scream, but Jaune quickly shoved her eye into her mouth and held his hand over it so she couldn't spit it out, "Tell Salem, The Scourge has been awakened and Ner'zhul has returned…"

…

The Untouched Place

…

Salem let out a gasp as the wine glass in her hand slipped from her fingers and shattered on the floor. She looked out her window across the blasted ruins of her domain and stepped onto the balcony. Someone had said his name, she dared to hope it was someone reciting a Legend of the Old Kingdom…but she knew better than that. In the deepest pit of her heart she knew…he was back, and this world was about to freeze…her hand was shaking at the mere thought of his return. He was known to be cruel in the past, She could only imagine how his cruelty worsened after all those years in exile…

Jaune gently massaged her throat ensuring that Cinder just swallowed her own eyeball. She gagged and convulsed against his hand until Adam came up from behind Cinder and knocked her out. Jaune just watched disinterested as Cinder's unconscious body fell to the ground. He sighed and looked at Emerald and Mercury, "Take her back to her master." Jaune ordered, the corpses nodded and carried Cinder away. He turned back around and saw Qrow staring at him with pure terror, "Can I help you?"

"Who are you?" Qrow's hands were shaking, even with his hand on his weapon he was still shaking.

"Who do you think I am?" Jaune asked.

"I don't know," Qrow answered, "And that's what scares me."

Jaune smirked, he blinked and his eyes returned to his normal sapphire. He shook his head before dashing behind Qrow, jumping over the dragon's bone and sliding next to Pyrrha.

"Are you ok?" He asked.

Pyrrha stared at him, she searched his eyes and saw only the goofy boy that stole her heart. She reached out placing a hand on his cheek. She rubbed it with her thumb and he closed his eyes leaning into her hand embracing it with his own. His hands were warm, she was confused in every way imaginable. Enough was enough, and she fainted right then and there.

"Pyrrha?" Jaune opened his eyes, "PYRRHA!" He shook and finally saw her chest rising and falling. He sighed with relief and laid her on her back.

"I'm fine!" Ruby pouted, "Totally fine over here! Just took an arrow to the leg that's all! Don't mind me! I'm still fucking bleeding over here!"

"You took an arrow to the knee?" Jaune rushed over to her, "Oh no, I guess you can't become a huntress now. Guess you'll just be a regular cop now huh?"

"Shut up," Ruby crossed her arms, "Can we go now? And for your information, it was in my calf! So your stupid reference doesn't apply here." Ruby stuck out her tongue at Jaune. With surprisingly newfound strength, Jaune lifted both Pyrrha and Ruby onto the back of the dragon which took off toward Vale's Safe Zone.

"Oh sure the girls get a ride back," Qrow transformed into his bird form, "Lay a hand on Ruby and I'm pecking your eyes out kid."

Today had gone from good to bad, bad to worse, worse to balls-the-the-walls-insanity, in just a few short hours. Glynda pinched the bridge of her nose telling herself it couldn't get any worse, the gods decided to make her regret those words. The zombie dragon landed in the middle of the camp and dropped off Jaune holding Pyrrha in his arms and Ruby using him as a crutch. The dragon left them behind and joined his new brother in the skies above Beacon. Jaune looked around and saw a makeshift building with a Red Cross on it. Ignoring everyone's stares and whispers he entered the tent and laid Pyrrha on an empty bed and helped Ruby into a different one.

"Mr. Arc," Glynda entered the tent soon after.

Jaune grunted in response as he watched the doctors hook up different machines to Pyrrha and cut off part of Ruby's stocking revealing her wound. They injected Ruby instantly rendering her unconscious as they began to operate on her leg. Pyrrha's wasn't as bad, once the removed her bloody heel, they pushed the rod in her achilles out. They didn't have to open Ruby's leg up much, only a few stitches were needed once they removed all the pieces. Both of their heart monitors were stable, he watched their chest slowly rise and fall as if everything in the past few hours never happened.

"Mr. Arc, can we have a mo-" Glynda tried to reach out but was cut off by a doctor yelling.

"YOU TORE YOUR DAMN STITCHES!" The doctor yelled at Blake. She continued to thrash against the doctor's grasp and tried to run away.

"Blake?" Jaune asked.

She ignored him trying to escape, he drove the tip of his blade into the ground right next to her head. She stared at the blade wide eyed then slowly turned her head upwards to face Jaune.

"What are you doing?" Jaune asked stepping on her hand.

"Ow!" She tried to retract her hand but couldn't. Had Jaune always been this strong? No, Ruby could knock him down…

"You're disobeying your doctor's orders," Jaune knelt driving his knee into her elbow, "Now why were you doing that? You weren't planning on running away were you?"

She looked into his eyes, the way he spoke, the new strength he had, it terrified her. She was already planning on running away yes, but this was just all the more reason to get out of here.

" _Frostmourne!"_ Jaune objected, _"You're hurting her!"_

" _It is better to be feared than loved,"_ Frostmourne lectured, _"Just watch."_

"I think that's a bad idea," Jaune twisted his leg driving them deeper into her arm, "Your friends and your team need you now more than ever." A vision of Yang losing her arm flashed across his mind.

" _Yang lost her arm?"_ Jaune gasped.

" _I see many things Jaune, neither great distances nor time nor space hold no bound on my vision. I know the past and can foretell the future…"_ Frostmourne explained.

"Yang lost her arm defending you," Jaune grew angry, "You're about to abandon someone who needs you now more than ANYTHING she's ever needed in her life?!" Jaune knelt closer his breath was chilling as it hit Blake's cheek, "If you dare to run away now, I will hunt you down, sever your legs, and drag you back here by the ears you seem so intent on hiding."

Blake gasped and looked into Jaune's glare, she'd never seen this side of him before, she never even once thought HIM of all people was even be capable of a personality switch like this.

"Just so we're clear," Jaune hit Blake's forearm with a disgusting crack. She screamed but Jaune quickly covered her mouth. The doctor was clearly mortified he was about to object, when Jaune turned his glare on him and quickly shut him down. He quickly went back to applying new stitches to her wound, he signaled a nurse to set and cast her arm. Jaune looked back at Blake and she quickly nodded, he did the same and left her alone.

" _What was that?"_ Jaune demanded, _"Why'd you break her arm?!"_

" _You're too young to know Jaune,"_ Frostmourne sounded upset, _"But your friend was going to run."_

" _You don't know that,"_

" _I do actually, I've seen it many times in my life, the fear of battle, it breaks many people…"_

" _But she's been training her whole life-"_

" _Training and real combat aren't the same thing! If Pyrrha had died tonight, would you have remembered your training?"_

Jaune didn't answer.

" _Would you tell yourself this is the job we signed up for? She knew the risks and now she must face the consequences of her actions?"_

" _I get it!"_

" _I don't think you do,"_ Frostmourne sighed.

"Mr. Arc?" GLynda tapped his shoulder pulling him out of his trance, "A word if it pleases."

" _This isn't over,"_ Jaune commented.

" _I wouldn't expect it to be,"_ Frostmourne replied.

"It's a little weird hearing that from you professor," Jaune joked.

Glynda felt her lips curling, always trying to make others feel better, "Mr. Arc, tell me something, how did you come across that sword?"

"I found it," Jaune only quarter-lied, he really did just find it! In a graveyard made up of his friends…inside his mind…he was so dead and the look on Glynda's face only cemented his fate.

"Glynda," Qrow poked her side, "We need to talk."

"Not now-" Glynda was cut off by Qrow pulling at her arm. She looked into his eyes and he opened them as wide as he could. She was taken back by his sudden seriousness, she nodded, quickly apologized to Jaune and left with Qrow.

" _I think they're going to talk about us,"_ Frostmourne huffed.

" _You think? We tortured Cinder right in front of him."_

" _Do you regret it?"_

" _Not even a little,"_

" _Well then let's move on, where are your teammates?"_

" _How did you know? Oh wait, vision right?"_

" _You know me so well, and we've only just met!"_

Jaune just sighed and went searching for Ren and Nora. He exited the medical tent and walked around the safe zone for a bit. The overlapping sounds weren't deafening, but he just wished the crying would stop. It was a horrible thing to think, lives have just been ruined, homes and families destroyed, both civilians and students still unaccounted for. He was so lost in thought he didn't notice someone standing directly in front of him.

"Hey!" He yelled.

"Sorry," Jaune mumbled.

"Jauney Boy?" Jaune winced, there was only one person who called him that, "Holy shit is that you? I haven't even seen you around school since the first semester!"

"Hello Cardin," Jaune sighed waiting for his usual insults and bullying.

"Hey is your team ok?" Cardin asked, Jaune's eyes snapping up at him.

"Pyrrha's injured and I'm looking for Ren and Nora right now," Jaune answered truthfully.

"She's not going to…" Cardin trailed off, "Is she?"

"NO!" Jaune immediately answered, "I'm sorry, no, she's going to be alright, she just took one hell of a beating. W-What about your team Cardin?" Jaune quickly wanting to change the subject.

"So far so good," Cardin nodded, "Sky broke his leg, but he's alive, so he's not complaining. Pretty sure its the painkillers though."

Jaune chuckled, "Yeah that's a pretty good incentive. Hey, I'm going to go look for my team…"

"Yeah," Cardin nodded, "Cool sword by the way, looks real badass compared to your old one. I'll see you around Jauney Boy."

Jaune nodded, _"That was weird, I'm usually getting bullied by him…"_

" _The fear of death has a way of shifting one's priorities, he's probably so thankful he's alive that he'll do whatever he can to make up for his past."_

" _People don't change,"_ Jaune was surprisingly cryptic when he said that.

" _Maybe not ordinarily, but it's not everyday your home is almost destroyed along with all of your friends."_

" _Maybe…"_ Jaune doubted his words but kept walking.

He found himself at the edge of the camp, where Professor Port was patrolling.

"Excuse me Professor?" Jaune approached.

"Why hello there Mr. Arc!" Port greeted with his usual bravado, "It's good to see that your team has made it here safely!"

"Oh!" Jaune perked up, "Have you seen Ren and Nora?"

"No," Port answered as he pointed to his ear and Jaune saw the earpiece, "But Barty has, you'll find him handing out blankets and water near the medical tent."

"Who?" Jaune tilted his head.

"Ah," Port chuckled at his mindslip, "Apologies, Doctor Oobleck."

"Ah!" Jaune smiled and took off. Port resumed his patrol as Jaune found Professor Oobleck right where Port said he was. His smile grew even wider when he saw Ren and Nora next to him.

"JAUNE!" Nora screamed jumping over the table and tackling him with all her strength. He smiled as he embraced her with equal - if not more - force. She started shaking and his shoulder suddenly got wet. He tried to see what was wrong but Nora made a noise and hugged him tighter. He felt another presence on his other shoulder, he turned to see Ren with his right hand on it. Jaune remained silent as held onto Nora, he used his other arm to pull Ren into it.

"May I have your attention please!" Ironwood stood on a stand with a megaphone, "The hospital has just been cleared and power has been restored. We will begin transporting the wounded there immediately! We are limiting it to family and teammates only!"

"Guys come on!" Jaune shook Nora free, "That's where Pyrrha's going!" Nora and Ren followed as they ran back to the medical tent. They saw ambulances leaving and some returning, Ironwood works fast!

"Pyrrha Nikos!" Jaune approached the one in charge, he showed him his Beacon scroll with his team ensuring he wasn't some psycho-fan stalking her.

"She's already been taken to the hospital," the doctor answered, "I'm sorry but you'll have to walk there, ambulances are for family only."

"Jaune!" Ruby called out, he turned his attention to her sitting in the back of one with Yang in the gurney, "Come on!" JNR didn't waste anytime craning into the ambulance with Ruby and another man.

"Hi," he waved, "Uh, I'm Taiyang, Ruby and Yang's father."

"Oh, I'm Jaune," he pointed accordingly, "This is Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren. We're Team RWBY's sister Team JNPR. We're trying to visit Pyrrha right now."

"That's nice," Taiyang nodded, "Ruby tells me you flew in on a dragon?"

Jaune chuckled, "Yeah," Ren and Nora were taken back by this information. They looked at Ruby hoping they were joking, but the look in her eyes said it all. Nora began bombarding Jaune with questions, but was quickly hushed by Taiyang to ensure Yang remained asleep. She sat uncertainty in her seat while the rode to the hospital. Finally they made it, but rather than Jaune sit and wait for Nora's questions, he ran into the hospital searching for Pyrrha. Once he got her room number he took off again.

He stepped in the room the exact moment she was waking up. He rushed to her side pulling up a chair, "Pyrrha?"

"Jaune?" She mumbled opening her eyes.

"Yeah it's me," Jaune smiled, "Ren and Nora are here too." They smiled and waved while Pyrrha's eyes adjusted to the light.

"Hello again," Pyrrha sat up.

"Feeling better?" Ren asked.

"Little bit every moment," Pyrrha nodded.

"Good," Jaune stood up and proceeded to hit Pyrrha across the cheek with his hand.

"OW!" She recoiled holding her cheek, "What the hell?!" She snapped but stopped when she saw Jaune had tears running down his cheeks

"Never," he growled, "Never do that again!"

Nora and Ren were also shocked at this development. They both looked at Pyrrha and saw her looking ashamed while she fiddled with the hem of the sheet.

Jaune pulled Pyrrha into his arms, "I was so scared," he whispered, "I thought I was going to lose you. If Frostmourne hadn't shown up, I-I…" Jaune couldn't finish his sentence instead he pulled her in tighter.

Pyrrha was shocked to say the least, she couldn't help it when the tears wracked her body. She tried to hug Jaune but her body wasnted to cry more than it wanted to hug.

"I'm sorry!" she wailed.

Jaune didn't answer he rubbed her back until she finally calmed down. She was still sniffling when they separated, she sat up on her bed and the rest of her team hugged her too. They didn't know what happened between her and Jaune but they didn't care. They were all alive, that's what matters. The other stuff could be settled another time, right now, they just wanted to be in each other's company.

Mercury and Emerald held Cinder by her arms while her feet dragged on the ground while Adam converted any grimm that tried to attack them. The three entered Salem's castle still dragging Cinder as they walked. The skin on her feet was practically gone.

"Oh my," Arthur Watts sighed, "You failed, she's not going to be happy about this." He smirked expecting some form of reaction, but was certainly surprised when none of them answered. "So full of shame you can't speak?" Watts kept goading hoping to gain SOME form of response, that was until he took the time to notice the shape she was in, "What happened?" He asked this time with seriousness.

"It is as you said," Emerald spoke without sparing him a glance, "She failed."

Emerald never spoke that way before, Watt's was partly interested in what made them finally take this seriously, but at the same time what happened to do this to them? They opened the doors to the main hall where Salem was waiting, she looked up and saw the state Cinder was in.

"What happened?" She stood up and approached her.

"That boy…" Cinder weakly spoke, "He had powers I'd never seen before…a message for you…"

"What kind of message?" Salem asked.

"He said my body was a clear one, then he said: "The Scourge has been awakened, and Ner'Zhul was leading them. He made me swallow my eye…"

Salem visibly shuddered, they noted her shudder and smiled. She examined the missing fingernails in from her left hand, the patches of skin missing, the nipple and right hand removed.

"He was holding back then," Salem returned to her throne.

"H-Holding back?" Cinder gasped, "How is this holding back?!"

"Watch your tone when you speak to me," Salem growled, then she noticed something off about Cinder. She noted the missing skin on her feet, but no blood trail behind her. The blood from her body's wounds was most certainly dry, "Cinder…why did you bring Adam Taurus here? You know he's not part of my circle…"

Cinder sighed and stood on her feet, her one eye opened revealing it was now blue. The four of them moved toward Salem but with her magics she cast them out of her domain. She sat on her throne and for the first time in millennia, she was scared…

The attack on Beacon failed, she just lost her Fall Maiden, and with Ner'Zhul's return her creations were turning against her…

...

 **Yeah I got this idea after the Battle of Azeroth trailer dropped.**

 **Let me know if you guys want me to expand on it.**

 **Don't forget to support the Genital WarThunder P/a/treon**

 **I'll see y'all next time!**


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